For a while, it seemed like Emeril Lagasse was everywhere.
A mainstay on Food Network for years, the chef helped put the channel on the map, and
his name was plastered on everything from cookware to spice blends.
Then, seemingly overnight, Lagasse disappeared but he didn't exactly retire.
While Lagasse's overwhelming fame has diminished, he's still the same hard-working and brilliant
man we all know and love.
The beloved chef has got a lot of irons in the fire though, and he's been keeping himself
busy.
Here's what Lagasse's been up to.
Beginning of the end
Fans were stunned when Emeril Live was cancelled in 2007, and the show's end marked the decline
of Lagasse's television career.
"You add a little BAM a little parsley, just like that, ya know?
Then you come back, and you take some green onions, and you go BAM, and don't go anywhere
we'll be right back!"
Lagasse put a brave face on, but the cancellation came as a blow.
He told GQ in 2016,
"When it ended, everybody felt like it was time for a little break.
I didn't necessarily think that, but that's what everybody else thought, that maybe it
was time for a break from Emeril."
His other Food Network show, Essence of Emeril, ended in 2008.
Food Network wanted Lagasse to create reality shows, but he wasn't a fan of that idea.
He explained,
"I'm old-fashioned, and I want to teach people how to cook, how to eat, how to serve, how
to shop, how to drink wine, how to mix a cocktail properly.
I didn't necessarily at the time want to get into this competition stuff."
"I mean…
I don't know why it's become that, but it's become, food is a competition, like a sport."
Emeril's Florida debuted in 2013, but it didn't bring him the same attention his previous
shows had.
Martha moves in
After Emeril Live was cancelled, Lagasse kept his restaurants, but decided to sell the rest
of his brand to Martha Stewart's company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, in 2008.
Stewart's acquired properties included all of his television programming, cookbooks,
kitchen products, and food products.
Given the success of his restaurants, Lagasse probably wasn't in desperate need of the money,
but he did get a nice payout from selling his lucrative brand according to the New York
Times, Stewart's company paid him a whopping $45 million in cash and another $5 million
in stock.
Back to his roots
Lagasse is primarily famous for being on Food Network, but that's not what he attributes
his success to.
Before finding television fame, the chef was hard at work building up his restaurants.
In 2015, the year his first restaurant turned 25, he told Eater,
"The Food Network is not why I have 12 restaurants."
Lagasse has been spending more time working at his restaurants, which means he's still
been working hard just not in the spotlight.
His fans who miss him can at least be assured that the chef is happy doing what he loves.
Lagasse told GQ in 2016,
"What really makes my clock go is still the restaurants.
I love people, I love being with my staff, I love learning together, I love making people
happy with food, with wine, with service."
Busy with books
Another way Lagasse has been keeping busy is through his writing.
Since he left Food Network, he's put out quite a few books, adding to an already extensive
bibliography.
Between his own books and his contributions to others' books, he has covered everything
from Creole to sandwiches and casseroles, all with the flare that only Lagasse can provide.
He's come out with more than a dozen new books since Emeril Live and Essence of Emeril wrapped,
starting with Emeril at the Grill: A Cookbook for All Seasons in 2009.
He released three more books that year and hasn't slowed down since.
Focused on philanthropy
In addition to running his many restaurants, Lagasse is focused on helping the next generation
of chefs get their start.
He runs the Emeril Lagasse Foundation, a non-profit charity he and his wife founded in 2012 which
has donated millions to various children's charities over the years.
"When I started the Foundation, the mission was to mentor and inspire youths to move forward."
In 2013, Lagasse was named Humanitarian of the Year by the James Beard Foundation.
"I'm not expecting anything in return.
I just want to move it forward."
Not done yet
Lagasse isn't the TV fixture that he was in the late '90s, but between his many guest
appearances on shows like Top Chef and Rachael Ray, not to mention Emeril's Florida which
aired from 2013-2017, Lagasse is making sure the world doesn't forget about him.
In 2016, Lagasse starred in the Emmy-award winning show Eat the World on Amazon Prime,
which features Lagasse traveling the world instead of at home in his kitchen.
As of August 2018, the show had not yet been picked up for a second season.
Between his restaurants, books, philanthropic work, and occasional television appearances,
it's safe to say we haven't seen the last of Emeril Lagasse.
"BAM!
There you have it."